I. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to passive devices, and more particularly to the design of high-performing inductors embedded in organic substrates.
II. Description of Related Art
inductors are an important component of many passive and active devices. In particular, the quality factor (Q-factor) of the inductors used in filters, resonators, oscillators, and other passive and active devices is oftentimes an important parameter that may affect the performance characteristics (e.g., passband loss) of the filters as well as the phase noise in the resonators and oscillators. Thus, inductors with insufficient Q-factors in filters, resonators, and oscillators can result in degraded performance characteristics and/or phase noise. Fu her, some applications such as power amplifiers also require high Q-factors in addition to high current-carrying capabilities.
Current planar inductors have been unable to achieve the higher Q-factors and current-carrying capabilities provided by embodiments of the present invention. In particular, planar inductors have typically been created by metallization of silicon substrates as utilized in integrated circuits (IC) technology. These planar inductors have limited inductance values, and thus lower Q-factors, due to the area and volume restrictions. Further, even planar inductors with multiple metallization layers, as with U.S. Pat. No. 5,446,311, have been unable to achieve the higher Q-factors and current-carrying capabilities provided by embodiments of the present invention.